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Aucturn
Aucturn is a planet-sized nascent Great Old One, the tenth and farthest celestial body orbiting the sun of the Pact Worlds system.12 Geography Aucturn is an organic, inhospitable world with a toxic, yellow-green atmosphere. Its size constantly swells and contracts, twisting its landscape. To observers from outside, Aucturn's appearance is inconsistent, due to a global magical illusion. The space surrounding it is filled with the wrecks of starships, supposedly sent by other planets to cleanse Aucturn during the Gap.13 The soil of Aucturn is rubbery or chalky, and only mutated vegetation could grow there. Its mountains resemble tumours, its oceans are made of black muck, and its atmosphere consists of various poisonous gases depending on the specific area.13 Despite Aucturn's mutable geography, several features are relatively persistent: the Undulating Sea, a large ocean surrounding the southern ice cap and containing various settlements, most notably the Citadel of the Black, on its northern shore; the Twisting Peaks, a stony grey mountain range stretching from northwest to southeast, shielding the poppies of the south from severe weather; and the Chalkmounds, a smaller mountain range in the northern hemisphere made of a fragile stone capable of absorbing toxins, making the surrounding area less inhospitable.3 History Prior to the Gap, Aucturn was considered neutral ground between the Cults of the Elder Mythos and the Dominion of the Black. They went to war some time during the Gap, which ended with the victory of the cults and the expulsion of most, but not all, Dominion forces.3 Inhabitants Orocorans are the most common among Aucturn's monstrous, vicious indigenous lifeforms, but are usually too drug-addled to pose any threat to others. Other native creatures include bryrvaths, gugs, shoggoths, and so on. They prey upon both of the major immigrant groups of Aucturn: the often-mutated humanoid worshippers of the Outer Gods and other insane people, who usually live near the Chalkmounds or in sealed buildings and wear environmental suits when they need to go outside, and spend their time either getting high on drugs or focusing on dangerous goals that threaten the entire system; and agents of the Dominion of the Black, who control remote facilities and avoid the attention of the cults while protecting their secret lairs and contacting more Dominion agents from the Dark Tapestry. The Elder Mythos cults have proven themselves resistant to Dominion attacks, and the rest of the Pact Worlds are content to let the Dominion throw its resources at a toxic planet on the fringe of the system.13 Government Aucturn is a lawless place where evil runs unchecked. Authority only extends as far as the individual leader's reach, and many places have no local government at all. The only laws that exist are built on power alone; the weak have no rights and are no more than slaves, food, or test subjects. Nothing is too depraved to be forbidden, and secrets are the most valuable currency.3 The most powerful leader in Aucturn is Carsai the King, a prominent cultist and suspected avatar of Nyarlathotep who has ruled the Citadel of the Black for millennia. Due to his relative approachability and opposition of the Dominion of the Black that threaten the entire system, Aucturn was accepted into the Pact Worlds as a protectorate, and Carsai is even represented in some media as an antihero. He has employed his right to speak, or send proxies to speak for him, at Pact Council meetings for several years.13 References # ↑ Jump up to:1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Logan Bonner et al. (2017). Starfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook, p. 460-461. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-956-1 # Jump up↑ Isabelle Lee. (2018). Fiends of Shadow. The Penumbra Protocol, p. 49. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-64078-0-972 # ↑ Jump up to:3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Alexander Augunas et al. (2018). Pact Worlds, p. 138-141. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-64078-022-4